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This vegan strawberry cake recipe uses fresh strawberries to make a light, fluffy, refreshing cake enveloped in strawberry frosting. I love how simply it comes together!
Craving more vegan cake recipes? Try my vegan chocolate cake, vegan lemon cake, vegan German chocolate cake, and vegan carrot cake next.
When strawberry season approaches, I love coming up with new recipes to incorporate them. My fresh vegan strawberry cake recipe is one of my family’s favorites. Couple that with my gorgeous pink frosting, and it’s a showstopper!
Table of Contents
Why I love this recipe
- Simple baking staples. Aside from the strawberries, the remaining ingredients are basic vegan baking staples.
- Bursting with strawberry flavor. If you love fruit for dessert as much as I do, then this recipe will become a household staple.
- Perfect texture. Vegan cakes are notorious for falling apart, but this recipe uses the proper ratio of ingredients to yield a tender crumb.
- Baked in under 30 minutes. And the prep time is kept to a minimum, too.
★★★★★ REVIEW
“This was delicious! I made the cream cheese icing with freeze-dried strawberries (ground into powder). Absolutely delicious! Thank you!” – Melanie
Ingredients needed
- All-purpose flour. I suggest sifting it first to remove any clumps. Use a gluten-free flour if needed.
- Baking powder and baking soda. Gives the cake some rise and keeps it from sinking in the middle.
- Powdered sugar. I tested regular sugar, too, but I loved the airy, fluffy texture you get from the powdered sugar. If you only have granulated sugar, blend until it reaches a powdered consistency.
- Oil. To add moisture without using eggs. Use a neutral-tasting oil, like canola oil or vegetable oil. I tested coconut oil, but in the end, I thought it made the cake too dry.
- Dairy-free yogurt. Coconut yogurt or soy yogurt works. I used plain, but vanilla is even better.
- Fresh strawberries. They’ll be blended into a puree. If you only have frozen strawberries, let them thaw overnight and drain the excess juice.
- Vegan frosting. I made my own and included instructions below, but you can buy vegan buttercream frosting at most grocery stores.
- Pink food coloring. Optional, but use a few drops if you’d like a pink cake.
Frosting ideas
Any frosting will work, but I made a vegan cream cheese frosting. Here’s how it’s done:
- Combine 8 oz. vegan cream cheese with ⅓ cup softened vegan butter and beat until creamy.
- Add 2 cups of powdered sugar and continue beating.
- Add 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract and another 2 cups of powdered sugar and beat until smooth. Fold in pink food coloring if using.
If you want to make a vegan strawberry buttercream frosting, fold in freeze-dried strawberries. If you want to make a chocolate frosting, fold in ¼ cup of cocoa powder.
How to make vegan strawberry cake
I’ve included step-by-step photos below to make this recipe easy to follow at home. For the full printable recipe instructions and ingredient quantities, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Step 1- Prep. Preheat oven to 180C/350F and spray two 8-inch round cake pans with cooking spray.
Step 2- Blend the strawberries. Using a high-speed blender or food processor, blend the strawberries to a puree.
Step 3- Combine dry ingredients. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and baking soda.
Step 4- Finish the cake batter. In a separate bowl, combine the powdered sugar, yogurt, strawberry puree, and food coloring (if using). Slowly whisk in the dry ingredients until combined.
Step 5- Bake. Pour the batter into the cake pans. Bake the cakes for 20-25 minutes until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let the cakes cool in the pans completely, then remove from the pans and frost.
Arman’s recipe tips
- Prepare the pans. Cut a circular piece of parchment paper to line the bottoms of the pans and grease them around the sides. If possible, use a springform pan for easier removal.
- Avoid overbaking the cakes. They’ll continue to cook as they cool, so pull them from the oven as soon as a toothpick comes out ‘just’ clean.
- Guarantee even-sized cake layers. Use a food scale to weigh the cake pans as you add the batter.
- Let the cakes cool completely before frosting. Otherwise, the frosting will melt, and the cake will begin to sink.
Variations
- Add more strawberry flavor. Add one teaspoon of strawberry extract or fold in ¼ cup of strawberry jam for a texture change.
- Make a single-layered cake. Simply halve the ingredients.
- Or make vegan strawberry cupcakes! To make cupcakes, pour the batter into a cupcake tin with cupcake liners and bake for 12-15 minutes.
Storage instructions
To store: Leftover strawberry cake should be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days. If you want to keep it fresher for longer, keep it in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
To freeze: Wrap leftover cake slices in parchment paper and store them in a freezer-safe container for up to 6 months.
More vegan dessert recipes
- Vegan brownies
- Vegan chocolate chip cookies
- Vegan cookie dough
- Vegan cinnamon rolls
- Or any of these vegan desserts
Vegan Strawberry Cake
Video
Ingredients
- 1 cup strawberries blended and pureed
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour use gluten free, if needed
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup confectioners sugar
- 1/2 cup canola oil or any oil of choice
- 1/2 cup dairy free yogurt can use any plain or vanilla yogurt
Frosting
- 8 ounces vegan cream cheese
- 1/2 cup vegan butter
- 4 cups confectioners sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon red food coloring optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F. Line 2 8-inch pans with cooking spray and set aside.
- Using a high speed blender or food processor, blend your strawberries until a pureed texture.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine your flour, baking soda, and baking powder and mix well.
- In a separate bowl, mix together the powdered sugar, oil, yogurt, and strawberries, and mix until combined and creamy. Gently fold through your dry mixture, and mix until just combined.
- Distribute the cake batter amongst the two cake pans. Bake the cakes for 20-25 minutes, until a skewer comes out just clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pans completely. Once cool, remove from the pans and frost, if desired.
- To make the frosting, combine the vegan cream cheese and vegan butter and beat until fluffy. Add half the confectioners sugar and continue beating. Add the vanilla and the remaining confectioners' sugar and beat until smooth. If using food coloring, stir that through at the end.
Notes
Nutrition
Originally published July 2020, updated and republished June 2024
Hi! I made this recipe a couple months ago and fell in love. Would love to get your opinion on making this chocolate/orange. Not sure which part to make cake and which to make frosting lol. Is this possible?
I have a chocolate orange cake that uses similar ingredients 🙂
I made this cake for 2 groups with a vegan buttercream frosting and everyone LOVED it. My mom said it’s the best cake she’s ever had! Delicious. I can’t wait to make it again!
Love this recipe! Sponge turned out moist and held shape well as a sandwich. I wanted a non dairy cream filling rather than buttercream and so experimented with vegan ice cream as other vegan double creams had no substance. The ice cream worked perfectly, frozen in 2 same size discs and added on construction inbetween 3 layers of sponge. Cuts beautifully and re freezes!
Has anyone ever tried this with King Arthur Keto Wheat flour?
To follow up on my previous question; I see that you have already answered to others…..sorry to bother and not have read ALL the comments before me first!!😊
Sheri: I am interested in what your “easy fix” was in making this Could you share what that was?
Hello,
I made the recipe with GF flour (King Arthur) and followed the directions entirely. The cake does not rise during baking for GF as the regular flour does. Easy fix! I made another batch and now have a beautiful four-layer cake instead of two. Delicious! Also, the cream cheese frosting tastes lovely! Thank you!
OOoooh, thanks for that tip, Dawn! I’m going to try it that way too. Arman, thank you for this awesome recipe. It’s my and my daughter’s favorite flavor cake.
You are so welcome, Lisa!
For more intense strawberry flavor – I added 1 cup freeze dried strawberries (that I ground into powder in a food processor) – yum!
Do you think this would turn out if I used applesauce in place of the oil?
Haven’t tried!
i loved that this recipe is do easy peasy. any replacement for vegan yogurt though ?
Traditional yogurt works!
I’m trying this recipe later this week and just wanted to double check that the 1 cup of strawberries blended and pureed is measured at a cup of whole strawberries, and then blended and pureed, rather than a cup of the puree. Thanks for any help1
Yes that is correct 🙂 One cup pre-blended!
I’ve tried the recipe with regular yogurt, gluten free, and added strawberry extract; halved recipe which fit in my silicone 6in pan. Yet I feel like it needed more strawberry taste…Do I measure strawberries before pureed or puree then measure the puree. I measured strawberries first btw.
I was wondering if I can use regular yogurt…or does it have to be non dairy?
You sure can!
Best vegan strawberry cake recipe!